As we travel further into flu season, the activity of the disease continues to worsen nationwide.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest surveillance report released today shows that 43 states are reporting either high or widespread flu activity, regional flu activity was in six states plus Puerto Rico and "sporadic" flu activity is in Hawaii. There are no reports of flu activity in Guam, Washington D.C. or the Virgin Islands.
This year's flu has been particularly severe with the CDC calling it an "epidemic" last week.
Influenza A (H3N2) is making up the majority of the strains of the flu this year, which was considered a "very bad match" for this year's flu vaccine, reported ABC News.
CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook is calling H3N2 "nasty," adding that "it tends to cause more severe illness, both for the elderly and the very young."
While there is no cure to the flu, doctors can prescribe medicine to lessen the length and severity of the illness for those who do come down with the virus, reported CBS News. Antiviral drugs Tamiflu and Relenza can help within the first few days of developing symptoms. Another drug, called Rapivab, was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration on Dec. 19, which is another option to help with flu symptoms.
